Electrophoretic karyotype of environmental isolates of Paracoccidioides brasiliensis

• Published in: Medical mycology (Oxford) Vol. 37; no. 3; pp. 219 - 222
• Main Authors: MONTOYA, A. E, ALVAREZ, A. L, MORENO, M. N, RESTREPO, A, MCEWEN, J. G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Abingdon Taylor & Francis 01-06-1999
• Subjects: Animals; Biological and medical sciences; Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field - methods; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Genome, Fungal; Karyotyping; Microbiology; Mycology; Paracoccidioides - classification; Paracoccidioides - genetics; Paracoccidioides - isolation & purification; Pathogenicity, host-agent relations, miscellaneous strains, epidemiology; South America; Colombia; America; Fungi; Typing; Genetic variability; Blastomyces brasiliensis; Molecular epidemiology; Environment; Ascomycetes; Karyotype; Thallophyta; Polymorphism
• ISSN: 1369-3786; 1460-2709
• DOI: 10.1046/j.1365-280X.1999.00217.x

Five of the 12 environmental isolates of the dimorphic fungus Paracoccidioides brasiliensis known to date, were analysed by contour-clamped homogeneous electric field gel electrophoresis (CHEF). The electrophoretic pattern was shown to consist of five bands, with molecular size ranging from 3.2 to 10 Mb, a model quite similar to the one found in the clinical isolates previously tested and used here as controls. However, one of the bands in the environmental isolates had a lesser weight (7.2 Mb), than the one corresponding to the clinical counterparts (8.8 Mb). This resulted in a smaller genome, approximately 29.7 Mb. The small differences that were found indicate the presence of chromosome polymorphism in this fungus.